Bankruptcy Indiana

Obviously the process of personal bankruptcy in Indiana is not a one-day deal; but, I can reassure you that what IS a one-day deal is stopping harassing phone calls and letters from bill collectors once you’ve filed a petition for individual bankruptcy in Indiana. That’s because the Automatic Stay feature of bankruptcy means that that it’s illegal for any bill collector to continue any collection efforts.  In fact, once any of the good bankruptcy attorneys in the Zuckerberg bankruptcy law offices has filed a petition with the court on your behalf, bill collectors have to talk to US, not to you!  That’s the way it is, not because I say so, but because that’s federal law!  

As you may imagine, after almost twenty five years in practice as a debt consolidation lawyer offering bankruptcy services in Indiana, I have a lot of experience with bill collectors.  Not all bill collectors use misinformation to scare you.  Not all of them use illegal threats to scare you.  But, even though the most professional bill collectors are only trying to do their job, their efforts create great disturbance in your life. The point is, you need breathing room, not calls at work or at home, and certainly not embarrassment at work or garnishment of your hard-earned wages!

What’s more, as a debtor, you have rights.  From the Better Business Bureau to the Indiana Attorney General, and all the way up to the Federal Trade Commission, the law is there to protect those rights. Just a few of the things creditors may not do are:

• Call before 8AM, after 9PM or on Sunday
• Use bad language or threats
• Contact employers
  
  Since my neighbors always share their copy of the AARP bulletin with me, and since I’m always on the lookout for interesting material to illustrate how the bankruptcy system works for readers of my Bankruptcy in Indiana articles, I was interested in a case AARP described in its December issue. It’s about one debt collection company that used abusive tactics against a Minnesota woman and ended up being punished for that.
  
• Mary K. was harassed for four months for a debt she didn’t owe.  The calls came from Allied Interstate, a bill collector for Sears.
  
• Allied reps were accused of using abusive language, threatening arrest, and revealing accusations to K.’s friends and associates.  In addition, they never checked the accuracy of their claims, even though K. had a name different from that of the alleged debtor!
  
• End of the story? Allied has agreed to pay $1.75 million to settle FTC charges in the case of K. and other harassed citizens.
  
  
  To be sure you stand up for your rights under the new bankruptcy laws of Indiana, whether it’s student loan debt help you need, help to stop foreclosure, or, worst of all, payday loan debt help, here are some hints from AARP about things to do if you feel you’re being harassed:
  
  Send a letter to the creditor via certified mail asking them, within five business days, to spell out in detail what they claim you owe, and how you are to proceed if you believe there’s been an error.

Whether or not you owe that particular debt in that particular amount, an important part of any Indiana lawyer for bankruptcy’s work is helping you analyze over your financial situation and know all your options!